The Wish List
by Rhodes11
Summary: Bella has a list of wishes she wants to achieve by the age of twenty-one. Can she get them all done with the help of her best friend? Genre: Romance, Friendship, Hurt, Comfort. A/U Rating: MA
1. Chapter 1

Prologue

A wish list; that was how their journey began.

Bella and Jacob had been through many ups and downs in their life; they had been through more trials and tribulations than they would like to mention and the powerful bond of their friendship had been threatened many a time.

But each time they managed to pull through and their bond grew ultimately stronger.

The one constant in her life was her best friend. He was everything to her; he was the reason she opened her eyes in the mornings and the sole reason she kept her steady heart beating.

Without the support of Jacob; she would not be the person she was today. He had kept her strong in her times of weakness, lifted her up when she felt low, held her when she cried, listened as she vented, and wiped away her tears of happiness. The one thing that had never faltered...he had always loved her.

_A/N: Chapter one up soon! :)_

_Thanks for the love, girlies!_


	2. Pounding Hearts

Charlie had just finished his evening patrol of Forks and was heading home. He had locked away all private and confidential files in his filing cabinet, and grabbed his jacket from the coat hook, when his longtime friend, Waylon Forge, walked through the door.

"Chief." He nodded in hello.

"Waylon, what brings you in?" Charlie asked as he grabbed his car keys.

"I was calling in to see if you wanted to go grab a beer or something?" His friend asked ,as he played with the box of pens on his colleague's desk.

Charlie sighed and threw on his jacket.

"I can't. I have to get back to the wife and kid."

His friend chuckled in response. "Don't sound too enthusiastic about it ,will ya."

"Yeah, well, I'm not sure I have anything to be enthusiastic about."

"What's on your mind, Chief?" Waylon could sense his friend's distress, but he also knew Charlie was too proud to share his problems.

"Ah, it's nothing this Chief can't handle. I just need to show the old ball and chain who's boss."

"That would be Renee then." Waylon muttered under his breath.

"Alright, well I'm heading there now, so if you need to escape the wrath of the devil incarnate, you know where I am." And with that, Waylon turned on his heel, and left.

Truth be told, Charlie was dreading walking through his front door. His house wasn't a home anymore; it was just a place where he laid his head and saw his baby girl. Don't get him wrong, he loved Renee with all his heart, but since the birth of Bella, Renee had completely changed.

He tried his best to make an effort with his wife, but she never seemed interested. Charlie worked every hour God sent to keep a roof over his family's heads; he made sure they would want for nothing. But even after all of that, she still continued to fight with him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Renee had been stuck inside the same four walls for DAYS. She couldn't go out because she had Bella to take care of, a house to run, and dinner to cook. It wasn't a secret that she had recently become rather fed up with her boring, mundane life. She wanted to see the bright lights of Las Vegas, party in the hottest night clubs, drink until she could no longer walk straight, dance until her legs gave way on her... but she couldn't. She was in her mid twenties, had barely lived, and was now married to the Chief of police in Forks, and mother to her six year old little girl.

Just for one day she would like to be seventeen again.

"Momma...?" Her daughters quiet, shy voice called from behind her.

Renee let out a deep, frustrated sigh and turned around from her place at the sink.

"Yes Bella?" She replied bluntly.

Bella slowly shuffled towards her mom and waved her school book in front of her face. "I was a good girl today, Momma. Teacher says I spelled all my words right...and, and she said she's going to enter me into the school spelling bee." Bella replied, getting more enthusiastic with each word.

"That's awesome honey, now why don't you go and study for that bee thing, and let Momma clean up, OK?"

Her six year old daughter's face fell, as her momma brushed her achievement aside, and told her to go to her room. Bella couldn't help but feel that she had done something wrong. Was she a bad girl? Was entering the school's spelling bee a bad thing?

Maybe she had left her room in a mess? Or not eaten all her greens when asked?

"Erm... Momma, can I please stay down here and study with you?" Bella asked cagily,her voice beginning to break with her emotion.

"No, Bella. I've told you to go to your room, now go!" Bella's eyes bugged out of her head. She threw her school book on the floor and let her tears fall from her sad eyes. The poor young girl cried all the way to her room, where she snuggled up on her bed and cried into her pillow; whispering how much she wanted her daddy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Charlie had pulled into their driveway where he saw the kitchen light on and noticed Bella's bedroom light was abnormally switched off. He sighed, and prayed he and his wife had a peaceful night of no arguments. He really didn't know if he could take another night of shouting and yelling.

He slowly walked up the path leading to their house, where he placed his hand on the door handle and turned it. The front door creaked open as Charlie cautiously walked in.

_Cautiously? What the hell type of life was he living, if he had to walk on eggshells in his own home!_

He unzipped his jacket and removed his gun belt and looked around ,half expecting to see his little angel run toward him for a hug... Nothing.

"Renee?" He called out into the silent house.

Nothing.

He walked into the living room and switched on the T.V. Then, he placed the remote control on the coffee table, and went into the kitchen.

Renee was standing in front of the counter, chopping up vegetables, when Charlie spoke.

"Renee?"

"Hmm?" She replied, as if she were rudely taken from some important thought.

"I called your name and you didn't respond?"

She placed the knife on the cutting board and sighed. "You did? I'm sorry I guess I was in my own little world."

Seemed to be happening a lot lately.

"Uh huh, where's Bella?" Charlie asked as he took a beer from the refrigerator and popped the lid.

He began to take a swig of his refreshing drink, when Renee dropped the bomb. "Don't know."

Charlie choked then, and coughed as some went down the wrong way. "Excuse me? You don't know?! What do you mean you don't know!"

"Charlie Swan! Do not yell at me, I am your wife! I deserve some respect!"

"Really? You wanna go there now? I've just found out my daughter could be missing and you're now demanding my respect?! You are unbelievable Renee, unbelievable."

She scoffed and placed her hands firmly on her hips.

"Oh Bella is fine, I sent her to her room. Do not brush me off! I want to know why you persistently treat me like a child? I'm your life partner - I'm supposed to be your equal! So why do I feel so inferior around you?!"

Charlie slammed his beer on the kitchen table and stalked out the room, while yelling, "I do not have the time nor the patience to deal with your childish behavior right now, Renee. If you want to leave - there's the door, get the hell out!"

And on that note, he ran up the stairs to find his baby girl.

Firstly, he went into her room, where it was unusually quiet.  
"Bella honey?"

Silence.

His heart began to pound and his palms began to sweat .

"Bells?" He called out, his voice was full to the brim with worry.

He quickly checked behind the door, under her bed, in the wardrobe - she was nowhere.

_Oh God, please let her be safe!_

"Renee!" He yelled, furious that his wife had let their daughter out of her sight.

"Don't even think of apologi-"

"Shut up! Just shut up! Bella is missing. I need to go and find her now!"

Renee's blood ran cold and all the color drained from her face.

"Well where could she be? Damnit! I told her to stay in her room!"

Charlie narrowed his eyes at her in disgust. "I don't know. But I will find her, and when I get back - you and I need to have a SERIOUS talk." And with that he ran out of the house and towards his cruiser.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Billy was driving home from the gorgeous, candle lit dinner he had shared with his equally gorgeous wife. The weather was decidedly cold and windy . The tree branches danced while the leaves whispered; the clouds ghosting past the moon creating an eerie illusion.

"Thank you for such a beautiful night, my love." Sarah cooed, as her chilly hand grasped her husband's warm one

"It was my pleasure, Darling, you deserve it." Billy replied as he softly kissed her hand.

Sarah was looking out of the windshield, when she saw a little girl walking along the road - cuddling what looked like a book of some kind.

"Billy, darling, stop a second."

Her husband slowed,then pulled the car over, when he saw the same sight as Sarah.

"Is that who I think it is?"

"I don't know, but whoever it is, we can't leave her out here."

Sarah waited until the car came to a stop, and then climbed out. She walked over to the little girl, while rubbing her own arms to keep warm.

Goodness, the poor child must have been freezing.

"Sweetheart?" Sarah called out softly, so as not to startle her.

She watched as the child stopped and slightly trembled, with either fear or cold.

"Honey, where are your mother and father?" Sarah asked, as she approached her.

The child remained silent.

Sarah walked around her, and slowly knelt down to her level. As the child lifted her head, she couldn't help but gasp in shock.

"Bella?"

The scared little girl nodded.

"My name is Sarah Black. My husband and I are friends of your parents. " Bella's face softened as she heard the kind lady speak of her mom and dad.

"You know my...my daddy?" Bella asked with a shaky, scared voice.

"Yes honey. Now how about we get you out the cold and home to your daddy, huh? How does that sound?" Sarah replied with a kind smile.

"Yes- please..." Bella stuttered, her teeth chattering .

"OK honey, come on, let's get you in the car." Bella nodded and slowly walked towards the vehicle.

Just as Sarah was opening the car door for Bella, she heard a soft whimper and looked down to see the child crying.

What on earth had happened at the Swan's?


	3. Best Friends

_A/N: Updates might be a little longer as I'm now back at work!_

_Chapter two. Best Friends_

_Beta: Tabitha_

_Pre-reader: Dancingbarefoot _

Bella had been uncomfortably silent the entire ride to the Black's house. They thought it would be a good idea to talk the little girl there, get something hot inside her to warm her up and then make the dreaded phone call to the Swan's.

Just as Billy pulled up into their driveway he saw their kitchen light switch on. They had left the twins and little Jacob with their babysitter, Angela for the night. She was a nice girl who was quite a bit older than the kids, so they knew she would be able to take control of any situation.

The car finally came to a stop as Billy placed the gearshift in park and turned off the ignition. Sarah took off her seatbelt and turned around in her seat to see a sleeping Bella. A small smile tugged at her lips as she watched the innocent little darling drift further away into a land where only her dreams existed.

For now, the little girl was at peace.

"Look at her, Billy," she whispered as she looked upon the child. Billy smiled at his wife's kind nature and slowly placed his hand over hers. "How could they have been so careless as to let a little girl, no less than six years old, wander out into the night. What were they thinking?" she whisper yelled, so she didn't wake Bella.

"They weren't thinking, honey. Let's get Bella inside, call the Chief and then we'll talk more," he suggested, earning a small smile and nod from his love.

Sarah then climbed out of the car and headed towards the front door, while Billy opened the door to the side Bella was on and carefully lifted her out. He carried her in his arms, being careful not to make too much noise or trip over anything as he walked into their house.

As he entered, he noticed Sarah coming out of the girls room with a change of clothing. Billy gently laid Bella down on the sofa, and removed the wet hair that had glued itself to her face.

"I'm going to wake her and sort out her wet clothing. You ring Charlie and see what the hell has happened." Sarah said with determination in her voice. Billy knew not to say anything out of line at that moment, so he simply agreed and went outside and locked the car.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bella had been awakened from her dream by the kind lady who said she was her daddy's friend. The nice lady gave her clean, dry, and warm clothes she should could change into and cookies and milk. Her daddy had always told her to never take things from strangers, but these people seemed nice, and she was unbearably hungry.

Sarah watched in awe as the poor little dot devoured her homemade cookies and whooshed down the glass of milk. She chuckled as she thought that that little girl would get on well with her son. Her little soldier had a bottomless pit for a stomach, he just ate and ate and ate. It was never ending.

Sarah smiled to herself as she watched Bella fold her napkin neatly over her lap, so she didn't dirty her clothes. She couldn't help feel disgusted at the Swan's for treating their little gem so badly...well one of them.

She saw that Bella had finished so she walked over and crouched down next to her. "Are you finished, honey? Did you want anything else?"

Bella shook her head-no.

"May I please go home? I want my daddy." she asked as her eyes slowly drifted up to meet Sarah's.

"Soon darling, soon. Your daddy will be here soon, in the meantime why don't you go and play with the girls toys, huh?" She replied with a smile on her face. Bella's tiny features lit up at the mention of toys, she had her own but not with her.

"Yes, please!" she squealed in delight. Sarah chuckled and helped her off the chair, then walked with her into the living room and set up some toys.

"I'll be just outside if you need anything, sweetheart, okay?"

Bella nodded and began to play with the toy phone, pressing the numbers and picking up the receiver speaking into it.

Sarah then went back into the kitchen with a smile on her face. Billy saw his wife enter and immediately went over to her. "I've contacted the Chief, he'll be here soon. He was incredibly worried about her." he said as his warm arms engulfed her tired body.

"Ok, just do me a favour?"

"Anything, darling."

"Talk to Charlie. I understand they are having issues, but I will not stand by and see that little girl in there hurting over their stupid arguments. The final straw was seeing her walking along the road, ALONE so late at night! It's poor parenting. And it's not just because I'm a mother, it's because I'm HUMAN and I care. I feel for Charlie, I do, but enough is enough." she sighed as she laid her head on his broad shoulder in exhaustion.

"I know, I feel the same as you. As soon as he gets here I'll have a talk with him." Billy replied as he kissed her head.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Charlie had been going out of his mind with worry as to where Bella could have been. He had checked everywhere he could think of. Though he was a little shocked when his friend Billy had rung him and told him they had found her walking alone on the side of the road. He was so angry at Renee. How could she have been so stupid! Bella was six years old for goodness sake! She should have been safely tucked up in bed, not at his friends', wondering where her father was.

He hastily pulled up outside of the Black's, rushed out of the car and towards their front door,  
anxious to see his little girl and make sure she was safe. He wanted to hold her in his arms, take in her soothing scent. He missed her sunny smile that always brightened his day.

Billy opened the door to an exhausted, beyond worried looking Charlie.

"Come in Chief, I have someone who wants to see you." He stated as he moved out the way and allowed him in.

"Is she ok? Where was she? Is she hurt?" Charlie rolled out, not bothering to breathe in between.

"She's fine, she was a little shook up, but Sarah gave her some clean clothing and gave her something to eat and drink. Now she's in the living room playing."

Charlie walked into the kitchen and collapsed in the chair in relief.

Thank God for that.

"I wanna see her, can I go and get her?" He asked almost desperately.

"Of course you can, but before you do that we need to have a talk, Chief." Billy pulled out one of the chairs and sat down opposite his worried friend. "Listen, you know I'm not the kind of guy to get involved in business that doesn't concern me; quite frankly I really don't have the time or patience for it. But, you are my best friend, and your happiness as well as Bella's means a lot to me, and I can see you aren't happy. I thought the arguments between you and Renee had stopped, no?" He asked.

Charlie sighed and ran his hands along his face in frustration.

"No, they haven't stopped, if anything they've gotten worse. I love her Billy, don't get me wrong, but she's changed. I think she feels that I somehow forced her into marrying me and having Bella, that's far from the case. I asked her to marry me because I love her, and we had Bella because I thought it was what we both wanted," Charlie replied quietly so Bella didn't hear their conversation.

"She doesn't seem to understand that I too am young, but I would not take anything back. Getting married to her and watching her have Bella were the two most important days of my existence, but since then, it's like she's blocked me out. I work hard for them both, to keep a roof over our heads. I work so she doesn't have to, so she can bond and spend time with our daughter. But if anything all she does is push her away." He continued, with emotion filling his voice. Charlie was never one for showing his emotions, so that was highly uncharacteristic for him.

"Maybe that's the problem? Maybe she wants to work, to feel like she's also bringing money into the house?" Billy offered.

"If she wanted to go out to work, all she has to do is say so and we could find a babysitter or something for Bella. I just want us to be the couple we used to be Billy. I want my wife back. But I can't keep taking the arguments. I shouldn't have to dread coming home. What sort of life is that?" he sighed.

"All I know is, if she doesn't sort herself out, some things will to have to change, regardless of what I want or how I feel. I have to think of Bella now."

Billy nodded and they both began to stand, when he had a thought.

"Hey, if it makes things easier, we have a babysitter we use for when we go out. Her name is Angela and she's a really lovely young girl. If you wanted you could bring Bella over next week and I'll introduce you?" He suggested as they walked into the living room.

"Yeah, sure, why not. Can't hurt can it?" Charlie chuckled in response.

Billy walked over to his wife who had moved from her sitting position next to Bella, to allow father and daughter to embrace. He placed his arm around Sarah's waist and kissed her forehead while whispering, "All done, don't worry honey. I have a feeling things will get a lot better from now on."

Sarah smiled into her husband's chest and held him close. Hopefully that would be the turning point in the Swan's rocky relationship...

Or would it?


	4. Things Change

_A/N: I'm SO sorry about the wait, work has been kicking me ass as of late, I've had health problems and my internet has been down. SO here's my latest update, hopefully the next won't be so long! I shall try and start setting myself update targets or something!_

_Chapter 3. Things Change_

The following weeks had been a roller coaster of emotions.

Charlie, after his talk with Billy, had taken Bella home; then decided to have a talk with Renee.

_"Daddy?" asked his little angel._

_"Yes, honey?" he replied as he picked her up then held her on his hip._

_"I'm sorry,"_

_"Sorry for what, baby?" he asked as he walked then up his driveway._

_"For being a bad girl." Charlie immediately stopped in his tracks._

_"Who said you were being a bad girl, honey?" he asked in disbelief, though he had a pretty good idea._

_"No one, but...but momma was mad at me, and she only ma-mad at me when I been a bad girl." Bella choked through her torrent of tears._

_Charlie sighed while rolling his eyes. What the hell was going on with Renee?!_

_He walked them onto the porch, then placed her on their porch swing. Charlie crouched down to her level while taking her hands in his._

_"Now you listen to me Bella, you have NOT been a bad girl. You, my darling, are my little angel, you brighten daddy's day. Momma was just having a bad day, sweetheart, she didn't mean what she said." He couldn't believe he was defending his wife's actions to his six year old daughter._

_What kind of messed up world did he live in?_

_"I just wanted momma to be proud of me." she said as she played with her fingers, the tears slowly rolling down her rosy cheeks._

_"Baby," he said as he reached out, then wiped them away, "Momma is extremely proud of you, and so is Daddy. Don't you ever think we aren't."_

_Bella nodded while tucking a strand of hair behind her ears._

_"Come on, let's get you inside, and in bed." Charlie held out his hands for Bella to take, then walked inside and put her to bed._

_Charlie and Renee had been sitting outside on the porch for around half an hour, when he decided to get the talk out of the way._

_"Renee, I think it's about time we had a talk."_

_She turned to look at him then nodded. Great, now she couldn't even give him a verbal response._

_"What happened tonight?" he asked as he took a swig from his refreshing beer._

_"What do you mean?" Renee replied in confusion._

_"I mean the fact that our daughter went missing and you didn't seem to care less!" he whisper yelled, trying his best to keep his cool but failing miserably._

_"Charlie Swan, do not yell at me, I will not stand for it!"_

_He sighed while running his hand through his hair._

_"Renee, this has to stop. It's wearing me down and I can't take it anymore."_

_"I hope you do not mean me? I've tried my best to be a good mother and wife, Charlie. What more do you want?" she replied with resentment in her voice._

_"I know you are trying, Renee, but Bella is six years old now and you've been like this since she was born for God's sake! I need to know what you want out of the relationship, this marriage. Do you still want the same things as me?"_

_Renee laughed menacingly and threw her hands up in frustration._

_"I want my life back, Charlie. I want to be able to go out with my friends and live, not stay cooped up in this hell hole, waiting for something to come my way. The people around here are one step away from cave people. Everybody knows everyone, nothing's ever private, I just wanted something more for me - us - than this!"_

_"This is my life Renee, I work here, our home is here, our friends are here! If you want to go out and have a good time, why the hell did we get married and have Bella?! I love that girl, she is my ENTIRE world, but enough is enough, we deserve more than this - that girl upstairs sleeping deserves more than this! And I WILL NOT see her hurt and upset by our actions anymore." He stood and marched into the kitchen. He was disgusted, barely controlling himself. His head was full of steam, he'd had enough._

_Seconds later the back door flew open and a fuming Renee stormed through._

_"So what are you saying?! Are you ending this?" she asked with her hands on her hips, pacing up and down the kitchen._

_"Renee, you don't want to be here, you haven't for a while! And tonight was the final straw, I cannot have my daughter feeling that way! She thinks you hate her!"_

_Renee scoffed._

_"Oh for goodness sakes, the child is being over dramatic, I merely told her to go to her room, that is all."_

_"'The child',as you so lovingly put it ,is our flesh and blood! She wanted you to be proud of her, she wants you to take an actual interest in what she does. She's a kid, Renee! She's done nothing wrong, yet for some messed up reason we've made her feel worthless. And I will not have that."_

_"What do you mean we've made her feel worthless?! I give her all the attention I can!-"_

_"Bullshit! You are more interested in surfing the blasted Internet than you are with spending time with our daughter. Quite frankly, I've had enough! You have a decision to make...no actually I have a decision to make, I want you to get whatever stuff you need for the night and leave. I refuse to argue with you anymore, I refuse to feel afraid to speak in my own home, worried that I might hurt your feelings when you clearly don't give a rat's ass about mine!"_

_Renee was red with rage._

_"If I walk out that door, don't expect me to come back!"_

_"You know what, I really couldn't care less, just get out!"_

_With that Renee packed her overnight things then left, slamming the door behind her, not even bothering to kiss Bella goodbye._

Renee did not return the next day, or the day after. Charlie would've been lying if he said that her whereabouts didn't concern him, after all she was still his wife. But he was passed caring, he had given her everything he could to try and make her happy, give her the life she wanted and all she did was throw it back in his face.

Charlie now had to concentrate on looking after his little girl and keeping a roof over their heads. He wasn't sure how it was going to work. He now had to find child care for Bella when he was working, keep the house stocked up, pay the bills, make sure their home environment was somewhat liveable, and in between then - sleep.

He sighed from exhaustion as he sat in his living room, watching Bella play with her colouring pencils. She looked so happy, content and in her own little world. Sure she had asked where her mom was, but to be honest, the house and the environment had been much better as of late. Charlie had begun to wonder whether he had made the right decision when throwing Renee out, but as he saw Bella smile at him and giggle, he knew his decision was right.

Another moment his cell phone rang in his pockets.

Charlie stood and walked to the end of the room, then answered the call.

"Chief Swan."

"Hey Chief, you are needed at the station, I know you have Bella, but we have some serious situations going on down here."

"No, I'll be there, just give me about an hour to find some child care and I'll be there."

"You got it Chief." and with that the line fell silent.

Charlie sighed once again and strolled into the living room to see his angel.

"Hey sweetheart, daddy's gotta go into work today, so I'm gonna need you to go and get dressed for me baby."

Bella frowned but nodded, then stood and walked towards her daddy. As she approached him she opened her arms, inviting Charlie to crouch down and pick her up. Once in his arms she then snuggled into his neck and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I love you daddy."

As her words sank in, he realised the stress and strain of the past few days had all been worth it, just to hear those four beautiful words leave her mouth.

He softly kissed her forehead while closing his eyes.

"I love you too, honey, so much."

They both continued to hold one another for a few more minutes, when Charlie realised the time.

"Go on honey, go get dressed and I'll pack your toys."

Half an hour later Charlie's cruiser pulled into the Black's driveway, Bella was a little apprehensive, as she was told she would be spending time with Mr and Mrs Black's children.

She just hoped they liked her.

Charlie then climbed out of the cruiser and walked around to help her out, when the Black's front door flew open.

Seconds later a child flew past his line of sight and stood in front of Bella.

Bella's lip quivered with fear. She had never met this boy before and he was a little scary. She looked towards her dad, who was leaning against his car smiling at the pair, when the weird boy spoke.

"Hi! I'm Jacob! And you're Bella!" he said, as he beamed in delight, bouncing up and down on his toes.

Bella shied away, until her daddy looked at her and motioned towards the boy called Jacob.

"Go on honey, he won't bite." Charlie chuckled.

She slowly crept forwards, with her teddy bear snuggled firmly in her arms, as if it was shielding her from his infectious excitement.

"Erm, hi Jacob, it's nice to meet you."

_A/N: There ya go! :)_


	5. Twain Set

_A/N: I'm going to try and update every Tue/Wed with this, but my Pre-readers and Beta are very busy women so this might be slightly later. Anyway here's four!_

_Chapter 4. Twain Set._

Jacob beamed with excitement as the strange girl greeted him.

"Come! Come inside! My mommy's making yummy cookies!" He rubbed his stomach as his baby face lit up. "They make my tummy feel good!"

The young girl looked towards her father for reassurance. She wasn't afraid of the weird boy; just nervous. She had never played with other children before, her mommy said other children were bad.

"Daddy? Momma says other children are bad. I don't want to be bad like them." She worried, with fear consuming her tiny body.

Charlie smiled at his daughter's innocence, then knelt down to her level. "Honey? Do you trust Daddy?" He asked while gently taking her hands.

Bella nodded wholeheartedly.

"Mr and Mrs Black are two very kind people, Jacob is their son; you have no reason to be nervous ,or fear them. They are Daddy's friends." Charlie said softly, his soothing voice washed over Bella; immediately calming her.

She stood opposite him, becoming fearful at the thought, kicking her toes into the ground as her hands clutched onto her teddy. "Daddy? When is momma coming home?"

Her father gulped hard, his head lowering to the ground.

"I'm not sure, honey. I'm not sure."

"Charlie, you're looking remarkably well. It's nice to see you with some colour in your cheeks and life back in your eyes." Sarah said ,as she floated towards him, then gave a friendly hug.

"Thanks Sarah, I hope to remain this way."

Sarah smiled softly, then took Bella's hand. "Hey sweetheart, are you ready for a day of non-stop fun?" She asked with a smile so bright it reached her eyes.

Bella's face relaxed as the kind lady gently placed her big hand around hers, then lead her towards the house.

Just as they reached the porch steps to the red house, Sarah then added. "Don't mind Jacob, he's a lovely boy, just very...enthusiastic."

After the arrival of Bella, Jacob had run straight into his room and began to dig around his toy box looking for his special train set that Santa Claus had given him for Christmas.

Jacob only shared his train set with his very close friends as he didn't want to get it dirty or ruin it. His mommy would be very upset.

She told him if he dirtied the gift or broke it, he would be placed on Santa's naughty list and he wouldn't get anything but a piece of coal. Jacob wanted to be a good boy; so Santa would visit him.

As he threw each unwanted item over his shoulder, looking for his toy he began to get upset.

His train set wasn't in the box.

Jacobs bottom lip began to quiver in sadness as he continued to look for it . His precious brown eyes that were a moment before, filled with happiness and joy, were now filled with sorrow and woe.

"Bella darling, why don't you go and sit in the living room and I'll go and fetch Jaco-"

"Momma!" Her little boy cried as he ran into the living room, then straight to her body. His tiny arms clung around her knees as he sobbed into her clothing.

"Jacob sweetheart, what is the matter?" Sarah asked in worry while kneeling down.

Bella sat on the warm sofa observing the mother and son in a warm embrace. Her heart began to hurt. Why wouldn't her momma do that? Bella longed to feel the safety of her mother's arms encircling her; protecting and sheltering her from the monsters of the world.

She watched as the kind lady placed her finger under the strange boy's chin, then brought his face to hers. "Honey, what's wrong?"

Jacob sobbed a little more, until they turned into to sniffles. "My twain set that Santa gave me for Chwistmas is gone!" He began crying again.

Another moment later his cries had settled.

"I wanted to show it to Bella, I wanted her to see how shiny and pwetty it is." Several tears escaped his eyes, as his mother warmly smiled at him.

"Oh Honey, I'm sure it's around here somewhere. I'll tell you what, lets have some milk and pie then we'll all go looking for it, how's that sound?"

Jacob's sad, hurt face then immediately lit up like a Christmas tree. "You pwomise , Momma?!" He squealed in happiness.

"I promise, Darling." She spoke softly, then placed soft butterfly kisses all over his face; causing him to giggle in response.

"Momma! Not in front of Bella, she's a girl!"

Bella blushed as she witnessed such an unknown display of emotion to her sheltered eyes. Was that normal? Did mommies and children behave like that? If so, why hadn't her momma given her kisses like that...didn't she love her?

She felt a sharp sting spring to her eyes, her forehead wrinkled together as she tried to stop the water from leaking from her eyes.

Bella missed her momma, with all her heart.

Sarah placed one last loving kiss on Jacob's head, then gazed towards a sad looking Bella.

Her heart ached for her.

How could Renee do that to her own child?

How could she treat her in such an ungrateful manner?

The mere thought of what that precious little girl had been though simply broke her heart.

"Jacob, why don't you go over and see if Bella wants to play?" She whispered in his ear.

The little boy then looked over to the sad, pale faced little girl, then replied. "Why is Bella sad, Momma?"

Sarah sighed, then let her fingers play with her son's long, silky hair. "Her mommy and daddy are having some problems, Sweetie."

"Did her daddy lose his twain set? Is that why her momma his mad at him?" Jacob asked innocently.

She chuckled and softly kissed her son's head. "You could say that, Baby, yes."

Jacob then shot out of his mother's arms and began to bounce up and down on his tiptoes. "Momma! We must help her daddy find his twain set! Then Bella won't be sad!" He said as if he'd just thought of the best, most amazing idea ever.

Sarah chuckled once again. "OK Baby, but how about for now you go and cheer up that little princess?"

Jacob's eyes lit up, "I be her pwince?!"

She smiled at her son's thoughtfulness then nodded. "Yes Darling, you can be her tells me she needs rescuing."

His eyes widened in excitement while nodding his head vigorously, he then ran towards her, yelling her name.

"Bella! Bella! I come to rescue you!"

Several hours later, Billy and Sarah sat around the kitchen table watching their son and best friend's daughter play happily. Jacob was busy asking her all kinds of questions, only these were a little more...forward.

"Bella?" Jacob asked as he pushed his toy car across the play mat.

"Yes, Jacob?" Bella answered as she played with his sisters ponies.

"Why are you white, Bella?"

She was confused, wasn't everybody white?

"Erm...well...my daddy and mommy are white."

"I'm not white, I'm golden...look see!" He shoved his arm in front of her face, parading it in front of her.

Bella looked at his arm and giggled. He was very strange, but she liked him. Jacob made her feel warm and fuzzy inside.

Jacob was confused by this weird girl. After all ,girls were supposed to be stupid and have cooties. He only knew two other girls, and they were his big sisters; though they weren't really were aliens.

But Bella was different, he wanted her to be his friend.

"Bella?" He asked again.

"Yes?"

"Why are you so small? You look like a flower, you might bweak if someone picks you up like my mommy does with me. I don't want you to bweak, Bella!"

Bella giggled again. He was silly.

"I won't break, silly, I'm strong. I drink milk everyday to keep my bones strong and healthy."

Just as she finished talking there was a knock at the door.

"Coming!" sung Sarah.

As she pulled open the front door, she saw a smiling Charlie. "Hi Charlie, come in, I was just getting Bella's things ready."

He nodded as he walked in, while looking around for his best friend. "Sarah, have you seen Billy?"

"He's just popped out to the grocery store, he'll be back in a little while, if you wanted to wait."

Charlie chuckled. "Nah, you're alright Sarah, I'll catch him tomorrow. I'll be dropping her off around the same time, is that alright?"

"Sure is, though I will be popping over to Port Angeles tomorrow for my paintings, so Angela, our baby sitter will be here."

He nodded, while walking over to his beautiful daughter.

"Daddy!" Bella squealed, then jumped and ran into her father's waiting arms.

Charlie chuckled and encircled his arms around her, while nuzzling his head in her sweet scented hair.

"I've missed you, Bells."

At that note Jacob's head shot up. Bells?

He smiled as he played with his trucks, he liked the name Bells, it suited her.

Bella leapt into her father's arms and smiled, she then closed her eyes as her daddy held her close. She only opened her eyes once to see silly Jacob looking back at her.

They continued to gaze and smile at one another until Charlie decided it was time to leave. He thanked Sarah for taking care of Bella and told her he'd see Billy tomorrow.

Then, Jacob and Bella ran towards one another smiling.

"Thank you for letting me play with you today, Jacob. I very much enjoyed it." She said shyly.

Jacob blushed then nodded. He wanted her to be his play buddy forever; he wanted to play cars with her until their daddies told them they had to stop.

"Bells? Will...will you be my...best fwiend?" He asked nervously, while biting on his lower lip. Not even giving the fact he'd called her 'Bells' a second thought.

She smiled brightly then nodded her head enthusiastically. She'd never had a real friend before. "I'd love to be your best friend, Jake."

Jacob beamed with excitement, he didn't have to play alone anymore! He finally had someone he could call a friend...his best friend!

That day was the start of a beautiful friendship.

That day the young, lonely boy called Jacob Ephraim Black had befriended the shy, small girl called Isabella Marie Swan.

That was the day they became Jake and Bells.


	6. Princesses and Dragons

The next day, Charlie had dropped Bella off at the Black's - where he met their baby sitter, Angela - and was heading to the station. He had case after case to sort through, plus the new file that had just come in about a woman driving under the influence of alcohol.

Never a dull moment in Forks.

Charlie pulled his cruiser into his designated parking spot, cut the ignition then climbed out, shutting the door behind him.

He straightened up his jacket then headed towards the station doors. He stepped up onto the steps and with one pull he opened the double doors.

"Good morning, Chief Swan," said Daisy, the station's receptionist.

Charlie gave half a smile, then tipped his head. "Morning, Daisy. Any new call ins?"

She hastily checked the call log, before meeting his sincere gaze. "No Sir, only the ones from yesterday."

He nodded.

"Awesome, catch ya later," and with that he headed into his office.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Twin sisters, Rachel and Rebecca, were sitting in their bedroom playing dress up.

Rachel was prancing around in front of the mirror, admiring her pretty pink dress her mommy had bought her. While Rebecca was perched on the edge of her bed ,brushing and plaiting her hair.

"Becca, you should put on your dress, then we can play Rapunzel together. You can plait our hair and make it really long!" Rachel said with enthusiasm.

"Then we'll be the prettiest princesses in La Push!" Rebecca agreed.

"We already are, silly." The older twin giggled.

***Knock, Knock, Knock***

"Hey girls, it's Ange. Can I come in?"

The twins like Angela, she was nice to them and really pretty. They saw her as their older sister.

"Sure!" said Rachel. As she was older, she always answered first.

Their door slowly opened and in came Angela. She stood opposite them with a smile on her face; the scene before her was too cute for words.

Angela walked towards the girls and kneeled on the floor.

"I want you girls to come and say hello to Bella Swan, Jacob's friend. I want her to feel welcomed, can you do that for me?" she asked, while adding the pink hair band into each of the girl's hair.

"Our brother has a friend?" Rebecca said spitefully.

"Is she pretty,like us?" asked Rachel.

"Now Rebecca, that's not a nice way to talk about your brother. You're supposed to protect him, that's your job as his older sisters; to shield him and make sure he doesn't get hurt or upset. So how about you finish what you're doing and come and say hello to his friend, huh? It will make him feel special and Bella feel more at ease."

Angela didn't often scold the girls as they were usually pretty good. But the rare times when the girls did kick up, she needed to be a tad firmer.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Jake?" Bella began while she played with his car mat.

"Hmm?" Jacob mumbled inattentively.

"Where did your mommy go?

"Momma go paint," he said, pushing the toy cars around the roads on mat.

"When will she be back?"

"Momma be back to put yummy food in my tummy," Jacob said with a bright smile.

Bella giggled then nodded.

"I like your Mommy, Jake," Bella confessed, feeling slightly guilty that she liked someone that wasn't her own mommy. But her mommy didn't want her anymore. Bella must have done something really bad, because she went away and wouldn't come back.

Now Jacob's mommy had gone away, right when Bella began to feel comfortable and safe around them.

What if she didn't come back?

"Thanks! I like my Momma too!" Jacob exclaimed.

~~~~~~~~~~~

More hours had passed, and Mrs Black still wasn't home. Bella grew more and more irritated. Jacob had asked her to play dinosaurs with him, but she didn't want to.

The nice girl that was babysitting Mr and Mrs Black's children, had introduced her to Jacob's older sisters. They were nice, but she didn't really want to be friends with them. They didn't make her all warm and fuzzy inside like he did. She wanted to be his best friend and nobody else's.

Bella thought of Jacob as a younger brother. Someone she could protect and look after.

The oldest girl had asked her to play dress up with them and be a princess, but she said they were the only ones who were allowed to be princesses, but she could be the stepsister.

Bella didn't want to be a step sister; she wanted to be a princess. Her daddy always told her she was a princess, it made her heart feel funny when they told her she wasn't allowed to be one.

Another moment later, the high pitched sound of Jacob's cry pulled her out of her day dream.

She ran towards him and saw he was lying on the floor clutching his knee, and tears dripping down his cheeks.

Bella didn't like to see her best friend cry. It made her feel angry...

"Jake, what's wrong?"

"The-They pushed me ovew!" He sobbed as he pointed towards his older sisters.

Bella moved her gaze from her friend, to his two sisters; her once soft gaze turned into a glare as she looked at them.

"Why did you push him? That's not nice!" Bella yelled.

"Hey, hey. What's going on here? Jacob? Why are you on the floor, honey?" Angela asked while bending down to pick him up. He then cried harder and louder as he wanted to stay near Bella.

"No! Stay Bella!" he shouted.

Angela hastily moved her hands away from his body and he cried out in protest, then moved her gaze to the twins.

"Why did you push him, girls? There was no need for that at all." she scolded, for the second time that day.

What was going on with them? They weren't usually like that?

"He said we not pretty enough to be princesses! And we can't be princesses because we don't have princes! He said Bella is pretty and can be one, because he is her prince!" they yelled in unison.

Angela the glanced towards a sobbing Jacob.

"Did you say that, Jacob?"

He nodded his head vigorously, "They be's nasty to Bells! They made hew sad! Momma said Bells be a pwincess and I be hew pwince. Momma said I has to wescue hew fwom dwagons! They dwagons!" he pointed his finger at his sisters, causing them to gasp in upset.

"We are not dragons! We are beautiful princesses! You are the ugly duckling!"

"Girls! Enough! Apologize to your brother this instant!" Angela demanded.

Both shook their heads,no.

And with that Bella stood to her feet and pulled the girl's hair. "Say sorry, now!"

"Ouch! You're hurting me! Let go!" Rachel cried out in pain.

Angela jumped to her feet and began to speak to Bella. "Bella, let go of the girl's hair!"

"No! Not until they say sorry for hurting my best friend!"

"Fine! We're sorry!"

With their weak attempt of an apology, Bella then released their hair.

"I'm going to tell my mommy on you!" Rachel yelled at her. Bella wasn't scared, she was protecting her friend.

"Enough, girls! You were also in the wrong, you shouldn't have pushed your brother. Bella resorting to violence will not get you anywhere. Next time, let me deal with it. Now, Jacob, lets see to this leg of yours, then I'll start dinner.

~~~~~~~~~~~

An hour later, Sarah had arrived home from her day at Port Angeles. She'd had a good day discussing her paintings with potential buyers. Now all she wanted to do was collapse on the sofa with her husband and children.

As she opened the door, she noticed the house was deathly quiet. Placing her keys on the hook and bag on the floor, Sarah walked into the kitchen.

There she saw her twin girls, her son and Bella sitting at the table eating their dinner in silence. Sarah chuckled then walked over to her children and placed and kiss on each of their foreheads, doing the same with Bella.

Angela then said goodbye to each child and Sarah, then headed home.

Bella felt a wave of relief wash over her entire being as she saw Mrs. Black. Having her and Jake near her, made her feel happy.

Bella smiled and then continued eating her food.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Charlie had almost closed all the cases that were filed, they were minor and not really worth police time and resources. Stolen library books weren't exactly the crime of the century. Just as he was putting on his jacket a call came through from reception.

"Chief, I have someone here you might want to see, regarding the case."

Charlie knew that was the driving under the influence case. He sighed, he really wanted to just go home. But it was his job.

"Alright, I'll be right out." with that he put the receiver back and made his way towards the reception. He opened the door and walked towards the desk.

"Where's my suspect?"

"Right over there, Chief." Daisy pointed towards a line of chairs by the wall.

Charlie turned around, when suddenly he felt like someone had thrown a bucket of antarctic water over him.

What the hell?

"Renee?!"****

**_A/N: Thanks so much for all of your reviews! They truly make my day to know you all like this so much, I love to read them all, so keep them coming! :) _****  
**


	7. Crackers and Reactions

Chapter 6. Crackers and Reactions

"Renee?!" Charlie cried out in shock.

His so called wife never moved an inch, she just sat in the far corner of the room keeping her eyes glued to the station walls.

Charlie sighed. "Renee, what the hell are you doing here? Please don't tell me you're my drunk driver?!"

Renee rolled her eyes towards her husband's nonsensical behaviour. "Oh Charlie, don't be so overdramatic. It was a simple mistake, I've had my hands slapped. Now, if you please, I'd like to be on my way."

Charlies jaw dropped. Was she serious?!

"Hell no! You have some explaining to do, Renee. You could have seriously hurt someone by your actions, do you realise that? I will not just let you go." he stated resolutely, before taking his handcuffs from his belt and walking towards her.

Renee spiedthe handcuffs in his hands and shot up in protest. "I hope you do not think those are being placed on me! I have done nothing wrong, yet you are treating me like a criminal!" She shrieked while pointing her finger at him.

"Renee, I am going to place these cuffs on you for your own safety and mine. I am clueless as to how much alcohol you have consumed and I'd rather you were restrained while I escort you into the interrogation room."

"Interrogation room!" She gasped. "Charles Swan, you're behaving absurdly! I'm your wife not some piece of trash off of the streets!"

Charlie chuckled. "The moment you consumed that alcohol and sat behind the wheel of your car, you became a lawbreaker. I'm simply doing my job. And I think it's comical that you are claiming to be my wife when you managed to walk out of our home so easily and not even contact me to let me know you were ok. So for now, no, you are not my wife. You are a criminal and criminals need to be interrogated."

Charlie and Renee spent the next three hours in the interrogation room. She, behaving in her normal stubborn, selfish way and Charlie driving himself half crazy with frustration. He needed to get out of there and collect his daughter, or at least call Sarah. But no, as usual, Renee, his self-centered wife, was once again making his life a living hell.

That night at the Black's, Sarah was growing increasingly concerned about Charlie's lateness. He was never late, especially when it came to his daughter. Oh Bella, the poor soul. What had she done to deserve such a start in life? The poor little girl had been clock watching for the most part of the evening, It was clear she missed her daddy. The little spitfire had even managed to make Jacob sit next to her on the sofa in complete silence. They just sat holding hands and peering out of the window.

Jacob had taken to Bella extremely well. Sarah had been a tad worried that her son might be a little shy around his new friend, but they got on like a house on fire. In fact, they were so close Jacob cried the first night Bella went home because his best friend wasn't playing with him anymore. Sarah and Billy had spent the latter part of that evening explaining to their young son that she would be back the following morning, and if he went to sleep the time would go by faster.

After hearing that news his baby face lit up and he immediately hopped onto his bed and flew under the covers. The last thing he said before drifting off to sleep was, "I bed now, see Bells in mowwow".

Now, the poor little thing sat on the sofa with her coat and backpack on, ready to go. Only, where was her father?

"Billy darling? Have you heard anything from Charlie? He was supposed to collect Bella almost two hours ago." Sarah asked as she put the clean cutlery away.

Billy was busy cleaning his fishing gear, when he looked at his wife in mild concern. "No honey, I haven't but I'm sure he's fine, he probably got called back to the station or something."

His wife nodded but wasn't convinced. "Wouldn't he have called or something? Surely he wouldn't just leave her here?"

Billy chuckled at Sarah's worried behaviour, then stood from the table and wrapped her arms around her waist. "I promise darling, you are anxious over nothing. He'll call or knock soon. Now, what do you say about giving your loving husband a kiss and a smile?"

Sarah smiled then pressed her lips tenderly onto his. After a moment she drew back and whispered, "I love you so much, Billy." Earning a blinding smile from him.

"Love you more, Mrs. Black-"

Billy's declaration of love for his wife was momentarily stopped by the ring of their house phone.

"I bet that's the old dog now." He chuckled before releasing her and answering the phone.

"Hello?"

"Billy? It's Charlie-"

He chuckled and drew back from the receiver. "See honey, I told you!" He said while pointing to the phone.

"Billy?" Charlie called, trying to get his friends attention.

"Sorry Chief, what's up, where are you?"

"That's what I'm calling for. I had a late case come in regarding a drunken driver and well the drunk driver just happened to be my wife." Charlie sighed.

"Wow, that woman can't stay out of trouble for two minutes can she." Billy said in disapproval.

"Apparently not; I've already been interrogating her for three hours and she won't say anything, stubborn mule. So the reason I am calling is because I was wondering if Bella could stay with you guys tonight. I have no clue what time I'll be out of here and Bella needs to sleep. It is already well past her bedtime."

"Sure thing, I was actually going to suggest that. She can bunk in with Jacob, seeing as they are such good friends now." Billy laughed again.

"I owe you for this Bill, she won't cause you any trouble-"

"Oh shut up you old fool, she is like family to us now. You both are so none of that. Once she gets some hot milk inside her she'll be fine." He stated, stopping his friends unnecessary thanks.

"Alright, well thanks anyway. I gotta go, my suspect needs more interrogating. Tell Bella I love her and I'll pick her up first thing in the morning."

Billy nodded. " Will do, take your time, she's more than fine here. Oh and Charlie?"

"Yep?"

Billy turned his head away from the kids and whispered into the receiver, "Torture the stubborn woman until she answers. Always works."

Charlie barked out a laugh. "Heck, my station should hire you! You seem to have our methods of receiving answers down to a T. Catch ya soon Bill." And with that the line fell silent.

Billy placed the receiver where it belonged then turned around to an awaiting wife.

"Well? Where is he?" Sarah asked.

"He's run into some problems at the station and can't pick her up tonight. I've said she can stay in Jacob's room with him for the night. I think she's going to need her best friend." He said wistfully while glancing over at the waiting pair.

"I agree. Come on let's get these two some hot milk and into bed. They will be tired in the morning if not." As Sarah passed she placed a soft kiss on her husbands mouth and smiled. Then proceeded towards the children.

Billy stood back and admired his wife. After three children and a full time job, she still looked positively stunning.

Sarah took off Bella's coat and glanced over towards her husband. "Come on, you can make the milk. Don't think you are getting out of it." She said smugly with an added wink.

He simply smiled. "Yes ma'am."

The clock had just passed half nine, Bella and Jacob were sitting on the floor in his room drinking their hot milk and eating crackers. Bella was a little wary of eating the cracker as her momma had always told her they were bad for her. She shook her head and began to nibble on the end of the cracker. Jacob was busy dunking his in his milk, smiling as he did it.

"Bells! Twy this! This yummy!" Jacob said eagerly.

Bella smiled and did as Jake said. She dunked the cracker in her milk and brought it to her mouth. As she began to swallow, she began to find it hard to breathe.

"J...Jake...air...I can't..." She choked, while slapping her chest thinking that she had some food lodged.

Jake looked at Bella and saw her struggling to breathe. He didn't know what to do, her already pale face was turning a deadly shade of white and she started coughing and suffocating.

"Bells?!" He cried out in concern.

"Jake...I...can't..."

"Momma! Momma! Momma!" Jacob yelled at the top of his lungs. His eyes welling up with tears as watched his best friend in pain.

"Jacob?! Baby what's wron-" Sarah stopped as she saw Bella suffocating on the floor. "Billy! She's suffocating! Call 911 now!"

Nobody had told Bella or Mr and Mrs Black that the reason those crackers were bad, was because she was allergic to them...


	8. Mistakes That Last A Lifetime

_A/N: This chapter will be the last in Jake and Bella's childhood, I hope you enjoy!_

_Chapter 7. Mistakes That Last A Lifetime._

Bella woke up in a strange, cold, smelly place. There were countless people around her, people she had never met before. Her throat felt extremely dry and sore. Her entire body ached from suffering the reaction; all she wanted to do was sleep.

"I'm so_ so_ sorry, Charlie," Sarah said, her voice shaking from all the emotion she felt. How could she have let that happen? Bella was under their watch, she should have known!

Charlie closed his eyes in exhaustion, as he stayed by his daughter's side, holding her hand. "Please, Sarah, it wasn't your fault. This is all me, her allergy should have been the first thing I mentioned to you." He sighed, ashamed his negligence had put his baby in a hospital bed.

"You're damn right, Charlie Swan. This is on your shoulders!" Renee said, bursting into the room. "How could you have been so careless with our daughter's life?!"

"Alright Renee, I think Charlie feels bad enough, without your input." Billy stated, firmly. He'd had just about enough of her 'I'm so perfect' routine.

She then faced Sarah and Billy and glared at them. "Don't you stand there and tell me how my husband feels! He is her father and he allowed this to happen!" Renee motioned her hands up and down Bella's fragile body.

Sarah was finding it incredibly hard to remain quiet. How dare she stand there and act like she's whiter than white! "Excuse me, but do not speak to my husband in that way." she said, confidently. "Do not stand there and act like this has nothing to do with you! If you weren't so inconsiderate, we might not be standing here tonight! Charlie has done a fantastic job in caring for your daughter while you were out - undoubtedly enjoying Fork's bars!"

Billy placed his hand on her forearm, pulling her back. "Darling, ignore her. She's not worth it."

At that comment, Renee saw red. "Charlie?! Aren't you going to say anything?!" she demanded. He lifted his head, defeated, and met her eyes.

"Why? Why should I stand here and defend you, when everything they've said is the truth!" He stood from the chair beside Bella's bed and walked towards his wife.

"You have the nerve to come here tonight and act like the perfect mom, when you've been absent from her life since the moment you walked out my door? I don't think so! Yes, I made a disgraceful mistake. I should have told Sarah and Billy about her allergy, but I didn't and that will forever haunt me! But, if you hadn't been so irresponsible as to drink and drive, I could have been with her tonight! She would have been tucked in bed, perfectly safe!"

Charlie was so angry! How dare she come into the sanctuary of Bella's room and cause a scene, while their daughter lay in bed in great agony. Did the woman have no compassion?!

Renee stood opposite Charlie wide-eyed and completely baffled. "Are you blaming me for your mistake? I hope not, because I have held absolutely no part in this situation whatsoever!"

Charlie scoffed. "Held no part?! You made our daughter feel unloved! You made her feel unwanted, like she was a burden! How dare you stand there and tell me you've held no part in this! If it wasn't for your pathetic behaviour we wouldn't be in this position!"

"STOP!" yelled Bella, as she listened to her mother and father shout at one another.

Both Charlie and Renee turned around and went to her side.

"Oh darling, are you feeling better?" She asked, stroking her daughter's long auburn strands. Bella was a little confused. She had been gone all this time, why was she now being nice?

"I...I want my daddy." She said, upset.

"I'm right here, baby. Daddy's right here." Charlie replied, engulfing her tiny hand with his.

Renee stood back in astonishment. "You've brainwashed her." She paused. "You've turned my daughter against me..."

Sarah rolled her eyes towards Renee's dramatic behavior. "If anyone has brainwashed the poor love, it's you. That little girl has been through hell these past few weeks and it's all because of your phobia to commit and stay in one place more than five minutes!"

She turned around, shooting daggers towards her supposed friend. "You do not speak to me! After everything you have done, I do not want to hear your voice! If you were a better mother, my child wouldn't be in that bed suffering because YOU should have been looking after her!"

"Me being a better mother?!" Sarah whisper yelled. "Where have you been the last few weeks when your child needed you?! Where were you when she had her spelling bee competition? Where were you when your daughter became best friends with MY son?" She paused, trying to tether herself. "I love my children with EVERY fibre of my being, and I would NEVER leave them the way you left her! That poor little girl and that shell of a man are worth ten of you! You do not deserve such a beautiful daughter, or a kind husband!" Sarah finished, with furious tears leaving her eyes.

"If you don't mind Charlie, I'm going to grab some fresh air. I can't stand to be in the same room as your wife." She spat. Sarah never said a bad word about anybody, but Renee Swan was pure evil and evil people did not bode well with her.

Charlie simply nodded and looked back to his angel. "How are you feeling, Bells?" He asked, concerned.

His daughter gave a wobbly smile, before squeezing his hand. "I would feel better if I could see Jake?"

He chuckled. "I bet you would honey, but a hospital isn't the right kind of environment for a little bo-" Charlie was cut off by the sound of a shrieking child.

"Bells! Where my Bells?!"

Seconds later Angela came into the room, carrying a devastated Jacob. "I'm so sorry, he refused to sleep without seeing if she was ok."

Billy laughed, holding his arms out to hold his son. "Ever the ladies man is my boy."

Jake was scared. His best friend was in a big building with strange people dressed in white and green. She had weird things hanging out of her body that made him want to look away. His Bella meant everything to him, and to see her in such a fragile state, cut him deeply. "Daddy? Bells be ok?" He asked, with sad eyes.

Billy smiled and ruffled his son's hair. "She sure will, son. She just needs to rest." he paused. "Why don't you say your goodbyes to Bella, and we'll come and see her in the morning. How's that?"

Jake's lip quivered at the thought of leaving her. He had just found her. "Stay Bells?" He asked.

His father shook his head. "I'm sorry, son. Bella needs to sleep, but I promise we'll come back tomorrow. Maybe we can bring her some of Mommy's homemade cookies?"

As Renee stood back and watched how this Jake reacted towards her daughter, she saw how incredibly close the children had become. She was scared. Renee could see Bella growing up and being stuck in the hellhole that was Forks, with no other opportunities. She didn't want that for her daughter. She might not have been the best mom in the world, but Renee wasn't going to watch her daughter take the same path she had.

She watched Billy and Jake leave the room, leaving herself and Charlie alone with their daughter.

"I suggest you leave as well. Bella needs her rest and I don't think tonight has helped. I do not want to argue with you any longer, Renee. If we are going to both see her, we need to at least get along."

Charlie sighed. He watched his angel's eyes close as she drifted off into sleep. He took that opportunity to talk to his wife privately. He had a few things that needed to be said. "I'd like to talk to you outside?"

Renee didn't answer, she simply followed while the cogs began to move in her mind.

"I can't do this anymore, Renee," he said as they entered an empty family room. "I can't see a way forward for us. I've tried, I really have, but it seems all you ever want to do is argue and it's emotionally draining me. I need to be there for Bella; she is my priority. Not you, not us. So with that being said, I'd like you to go home and pack your things. I'll give you tonight to clear your stuff; I'm staying with Bella. After that we need to discuss visitation rights for Bella-"

"Oh don't worry, Charlie. I've already got plans forming; I just need to make the arrangements." She added, spitefully.

"Arrangements?" He repeated.

"Yes, arrangements. I know you probably thought that I would just leave quietly, but I can assure you CHIEF, I most certainly will not. She is my daughter and she belongs with me. Try and stop me and I'll fight your ass all the way to the courts." Renee threatened.

Charlie was fuming! "You wouldn't dare. She is my daughter! If you take her away from me, I'll have every cop in the state hunting you down!"

She laughed menacingly. "Oh wouldn't I? You clearly have no idea who you are married to, Charlie Swan." And with that she grabbed her bag and left the room, slamming the door behind her. Leaving Charlie wondering what the hell she was going to do and how on earth he was going to fight her.

It was early the next morning, and Charlie had hardly slept, worrying that Renee might come in the middle of the night and steal Bella away. Billy and Sarah had phoned to say they were on the way with Jake, cookies in tow. Knowing he would have some moral support, if and when his psychotic wife turned up, was a major relief.

"Daddy?" Bella said, sleepily.

"Yes baby?" He replied, leaning down to kiss her forehead.

"I'm sorry." She replied, almost crying.

"Hey, why are you sorry?"

Her beautiful brown eyes looked right through him. "Because I ate the bad cracker and now you and Mommy are mad at each other. I didn't mean it, I'm sorry, Daddy." She cried.

He sighed and gently took her hand. "The reason Mommy and Daddy were arguing has nothing to do with you, honey. Don't ever think that." They sat there a few moments longer, Charlie trying his best not to fall apart. Not knowing what Renee was going to do was killing him.

Seconds later someone knocked at the door.

"Is it alright if we come in? I have a hyper boy itching to see his best friend." Charlie's own best friend joked, as Jake ran straight past his father and into the room next to Bella.

"Bells, cookies...they make you bettew. Mommy told me they good for youw tummy!"

As he handed her the cookies a nurse came in and checked Bella's vitals. "She's doing much better, I think with maybe a few more days rest, she'll be right as rain."

Jake beamed. "Bells! You can come play me!"

"I'm afraid that won't be possible, Jacob." Renee announced, walking in the room with a suitcase and backpack.

He frowned, "Why not?!"

"Because she is coming with me, isn't that right, Charlie?" She looked towards her soon to be ex husband.

"Outside. Now." Charlie said through gritted teeth.

Just as they were leaving he heard Jake say, "It's Kay, Bells. You come play me soon!" And that broke his heart.

"I don't want this to be hard on Bella, so I'd rather the goodbyes were short and sweet. We've got a long journey ahead of us." She replied, not caring who she hurt.

"You cannot be serious?! You really think I'm just going to let my daughter leave that easily?! You are off your head, Renee. Do you really think the authorities will let you take my child away from me?!"

"They will once they find out how she almost died in your care. They will see that as you not looking after her properly. Then there's the fact you work long hours so you would be leaving her with God knows what kind of people. The problems will really start to build up against you, Charlie."

"You are evil, Renee. Pure evil. I will not let you get away with this, that girl is staying with me!"

She smiled alarmingly and began to make her way back into the room. "We'll see about that."

Half an hour later, Renee had gone made the excuse she was leaving to grab Bella a few items of clothing, instead she made her way to the nurses station.

Charlie had fallen asleep in the chair, thinking he at least had around an hour to sleep, and Billy, Sarah and Jake were busy saying goodbye to Bella.

"Bye, Bella. I come see you soon." Jake said, his lips wobbling as he felt the tears sting his eyes. He didn't want to leave her.

"Bye, Jake. I'll see you tomorrow." She replied, mirroring his emotions.

"I luv you!" He declared, then ran into his fathers warm embrace.

"I love you too." She whispered back, as they left the room.

Meanwhile, Renee was busy ignoring the nurses advice about leaving Bella in the hospital over night. "I know how to take care of my damn child! Now give me the release papers!"

The nurse sighed and handed over the papers. She couldn't force her to keep the child in, it was her decision.

Renee filled out the forms and threw the pen and clipboard back to her, then ran back the the room for her daughter.

Moments later, she quietly entered the room, her Godforsaken husband was fast asleep in the chair opposite, giving her the perfect escape route.

"Bella, time to go darling." She said, softly. Not wanting her to make a fuss.

Bella woke with a start, and looked at her mom. "Mommy? Where are we going? Is Daddy coming?" She asked, in a whispered tone as her mother signaled to keep it down.

"No darling. It's just you and Mommy, we are going on a trip."

Bella liked trips. Her face lit up as she imagined where they could possibly be going. She carefully climbed out of the bed and watched as her mom removed all the wires. Renee had a feeling they would start beeping as she took them off so she had to do it quickly. She put Bella's shoes on her feet and helped her put on a huge body length coat, figuring she wouldn't have to time change the little girl.

With that all done, she picked her up and placed her on her hip. "Come on Sweetie, lets get going."

Bella nodded and laid her head on her mother's shoulder, happy that she was finally showing her some attention. She them whispered, "Bye, Daddy..."

Renee grabbed the case and threw the backpack over her shoulder, she took one last glance back at her husband, making sure he was still asleep and made her way towards the door.

Just as she was about to leave, she whispered. "Goodbye, Charlie. I will make sure you never see her again..."

And with that, they both left the hospital and Forks.


	9. Missing

_Sorry this has taken longer, I've only just got it back from my Beta's_

Chapter 8. Missing.

Charlie had awoken with a start, his head buzzing and spinning from everything that had happened that day. He was so physically worn out, he really didn't know if he could stomach anything else.

Knowing Renee had been so evil as to threaten to take away his sole reason for existing, had set his nerves on edge. Surely she wouldn't stoop so low, right? Surely her threats were just that, threats?

As his eyes adjusted to the harsh glare blazing through the window, he slowly sat up. After stretching out, he let his head fall into his hands. How the hell had his life come to this? Having to sleep with one eye open, in case she came in and took her from right under his nose.

The entire ordeal was messed up.

A few moments later, Charlie slowly lifted his head, and glanced over towards Bella's bed.

As he saw she was missing, a shockwave of horror struck his heart. He leapt out of the chair, frantically looking around the room.

"Bells, baby?" He asked, anxiously.

Nothing.

Charlie continued his search, "Honey, if you are playing, now might be a good time to show me where you are. Daddy's worried." He began to plead with an empty room.

Still nothing.

He stood in the middle of the room, trying his best not to completely overreact. She was fine, probably just using the restrooms or something. Trying to push the niggling feeling that something wasn't right out of his mind, he staggered back into the room and collapsed on his little girl's bed.

That's when something struck him. The bed sheets were cold.

If she had just used the toilet, the sheets and bed cover would still be warm. But there wasn't even a hint of warmth.

What the hell?!

Charlie ran out of the room and into the corridor of the hospital, frantically scanning the area. "Bella? honey? answer Daddy."

Nothing.

Shit! Where the hell was she?!

He then ran toward the nurses station, panting as he collapsed over the reception desk. "Please...my daughter...she's not in her room." Charlie said, breathlessly.

"OK Sir, please calm down. What's her name?"

"Swan, Isabella Swan." He said quickly, desperately needing an answer.

The elderly lady behind the desk hit a few buttons on her keyboard.

"OK, Mr. Swan, It appears Miss Swan was released in the early hours of the morning."

What?!

He saw red.

"What do you mean she was released? By who?! I never signed any forms, who gave permission for thi-" Charlie then realised.

Renee.

Where was Renee?

Why wasn't she in the room when he woke up?

When did this happen? And why the hell hadn't he woken up?!

Dammit Renee!

"How long ago was she released?" He demanded, slamming his hand on the desk.

The lady winced and flinched in fright.

"Erm...Mrs. Swan signed the papers at..." she paused, scanning the screen. "Seven-thirty-two this morning."

That was almost two hours ago! They could be anywhere by now!

Without a second thought, he ran through the hospital corridors and straight out into the crisp morning air.

Reaching his police cruiser, he yanked open the door and climbed in. Charlie picked up his radio and radioed through to the station.

"This is Chief Swan, in urgent need of assistance."

He threw his cruiser in drive and sped towards the station, not caring about the Goddamned speed regulations.

"Chief? I got your call for assistance. What's the emergency?"Said Sergeant Patrick, his co-worker.

Charlie picked up the radio, "Have any calls come in within the last two hours, regarding missing persons?"

The line fell silent. _Goddamit Patrick! This is no time to go silent on me!_

"I've just checked our systems and there's nothing. Chief what's going on? Why do you sound so agitated?"

"I think my daughter has been taken...by her mother. I need to find her Patrick, I need to find my girl."

"Oh shit, don't worry Charlie, I'm on it. We'll find her."

Charlie sighed and simply replied "10-4"

His mind was working overtime. Where the hell was his baby? What the fuck was wrong with his Goddamned wife?! How could she be so selfish as to take their SICK daughter out of the hospitals care?

What the hell was he going to do if they couldn't be found? No, he shook his head refusing to believe that nothing could be done.

Bella was his daughter and he would be damned if his psychotic soon to be ex-wife was going to take her away from him.

He would fight her every fucking step of the way.

Charlie just hoped it didn't come to that.

Later that evening, he had driven to the only place he could think of...La Push. He wasn't sure of where else he could go. Something told him he should head home, but Charlie needed to see the only two people he could trust.

Half an hour later, Charlie had arrived and told Sarah and Billy everything. Sarah was at a loss for words, bombarding him with questions regarding Bella's safety. While Billy was busy trying to help in anyway possible.

"Have you been home?" He asked, trying to find solutions.

Charlie shook his head in defeat. "No I just came here. I wanted to see if you knew anything. I've already called through to the station, but they've heard nothing." He signed, choking back his tears. "I need to find her Bill, she's my baby, and that...witch has taken her!"

Sarah then added. "Charlie, as much as I hate everything she's done, you can't go around accusing people."

He scoffed. "I know that, but I know she took her. She's the one who signed the release papers, they only let her go because Renee's her mother!"

"OK, first thing you need to do is go home, see if they are there. If not, you need to try and get in contact with her. She's bound to have her cell on her."

He simply nodded and made his way towards the door. "Please contact me if you hear of anything?"

Both Sarah and Billy nodded. "Of course, Charlie."

Charlie then left the Black's house, climbed in his car and headed towards his house.

After going through their house with a fine tooth comb, he found absolutely nothing that could lead him to his wife and child's disappearance.

Absolutely nothing.

He had called her cell countless times, which just took him to voicemail. He left so many messages, sent so many texts, he was beginning to run out of options.

Just then his cell went off. He grabbed it from the table and flipped it open. "Swan."

"Charlie, it's Patrick," his heart sped up, had he found something? "I've talked to the missing persons department both here and in Port Angeles and they've heard nothing. Did Renee give you any indication of where she would be taking Bella?"

He shook his head, collapsing onto the couch, "No. Nothing."

"Alright, well to make it a little easier to track her down, we can track her bank account, to see if, when, and where she makes withdrawals. I can also put her vehicle plates on high alert. So if you wanna give me them, I can get that started."

Charlie gave Patrick the information he needed, and prayed it was enough.

"We are going to do our very best to get her back, Charlie. But you may want to get some legal advice. After all, you two are still married aren't you?"

"Yes, why?"

"Well, I'm not sure HOW much we'll be able to do, as Renee is her mother. I'm not a parent so I don't know, but if we were to find her, the powers that be may give Renee first consideration as she is her mother." He paused, "It's just something you may need to think about, none of us wanna see you get hurt."

Charlie sighed, he really didn't need to hear that. "Thanks Patrick. I appreciate everything. Can you let me know if you hear anything?"

"Of course, Charlie. You'll be the first to know."

Meanwhile, Renee and Bella had just touched down in Jacksonville, Florida. Renee was a woman on a mission. She grabbed a hold of her daughter's hand, dragging her through the busy terminal. Bella was scared and weak, her legs were failing, threatening to give way on her at any moment. But she held on to her Mommy's hand and kept quiet, scared if she said anything her Mommy would yell at her.

"Bella, please try to keep up. We have places to be." Renee said, her patience wearing thin.

Bella whimpered. She was trying to be a good girl, but she really didn't feel very good. "Mommy, my tummy hurts."

Her mother sighed and shook her head. "Isabella, you will be fine. Now listen to me, you need to keep up. Mommy's friend will be picking us up and I don't want him to be waiting because of your disobedience. Do you understand?" Renee looked straight into her child's eyes.

Bella simply nodded, too scared to say otherwise.

"Good. Now, lets get going."

And with that, Bella was dragged by her arm through the airport, while tears began to stream down her face.

All she wanted was her daddy.

Three hours later, Charlie was going damn near insane. He'd heard nothing for three hours, and his patience was beginning to wear out.

Where the hell were they?! Surely someone must have spotted them?

Charlie couldn't take the silence any longer, so he rang the station.

After the third ring, someone picked up. "Sargent Patrick speaking,"

"Patrick it's Charlie, anything new? Any word?"

"Sorry Chief, I have the guys working their asses off trying to find a trace of her whereabouts, but so far nothing."

"Christ, I'm going out of my head here! This is ridiculous!"

"I know, but we'll find her, she is bound to slip up at some point, right?"

"I hope so, I really do. I just hope I'm not too late."

"Try and get some shut eye, Chief. I'll let you know if we find anything." And with that the line fell silent.

The silence was fucking killing him! He had to do something!

Charlie picked up his cell and dialed Renee's number one more time. Keeping in mind that she probably wouldn't answer.

To his surprise she picked up the phone.

He didn't even give her chance to speak. "Where the hell is my baby?! Do you have any idea what you've done?! She is sick! She still needs to rest!"

"I know exactly how her condition is as she is with me! She is fine! You need to stop trying to contact me Charlie, you made it quite clear we are over."

Charlie laughed menacingly. "Are you fucking kidding me?! Hell yes we are over! But if you think I'm going to let you get away with kidnapping MY daughter, you've got another thing coming!"

"She is my daughter too! I gave birth to her! I spent nine Goddamned months of my life carrying her! Not you, me! What can you possibly do, Charlie? I have just as much right to see her as you do! You cannot threaten me with anything, and if you try...think of the ammunition I have against you! Just face it, we are both better off without you. I will not have my daughter growing up in that hellhole! I will not have my only child having any further contact with that rat of a child she has befriended. She will NOT go down the path I did. I will not stand for it." Renee fumed, panting down the receiver.

"That is not your choice, Renee!" He sighed in frustration, running his hands over his face. "I'm giving you twenty-four hours to bring her back to me. If you ignore me, I'll have every cop in the state after your ass! I will go to a lawyer, and I will seek legal advice. You will not get away with this!"

Renee simply laughed. "Bella darling, would you like to speak to your father?"

Charlie's heart began to pound at the thought of hearing his little girl's voice. "Daddy?"

He literally could have cried. "Oh my baby. Are you ok sweetie? Are you hurt?" He asked quickly.

"No, I'm not hurt. I'm scared. I want to come home, Daddy." His heart broke at her faltering voice.

He'd had just about enough.

"Don't worry baby, I'll sort this out. You'll be back with Daddy soon. I promise." The tears were now streaming down his face and he tried to swallow the lump in the back of his throat. "I love you so much, my precious angel."

"I love yo-"

There were some fumbling sounds, when the bane of his existence came back on the line. "That's all you get. Now, if I hear from you again regarding anything else other than our divorce, I will have you done for harassment. Remember her words, Charlie. Remember her voice. As that's the last you will ever hear of it. That I can promise you."

And with that the line fell silent.

He couldn't control himself. The tears unleashed from his eyes like water from a dam. Her voice, that beautiful angelic voice. Her sweet, innocent smile. Her gorgeous, wide brown eyes.

God, he missed her so much.

That night he slept in her bedroom, surrounded by her scent and her special teddies. His heart broke into smithereens as he was reminded of everything Bella.

Little did he know, that Renee was in fact right. That would be the last time he and his angel spoke.


	10. Memories From The Past

_Sorry for the delay - again!_

_Chapter 9. Memories From The Past_

**Ten years later**

"Bella! Turn that racket down, now!" yelled Bella's mother from downstairs.

She simply chuckled devilishly and cranked the volume up.

Bella kept her eyes fixed on the tv in front of her, watching the clips in resentment, then glanced down to her injured, bandaged leg.

Three weeks prior, she had taken a bad fall at her ballet performance, the pain was unbearable. So bad she had to be carried off stage. Bella was so mad at herself because that one performance was her one chance at impressing the scouts. But unfortunately her mind was a little preoccupied.

Renee had promised she would be there to see her only daughter give one of the most important performances of her life. But she never showed. Her mother had let her down again...to go to her new husband, Phil's baseball game.  
.

Bella had been so excited that her mom would be coming to her performance, she had told all her friends, even pointed out which row and seat she would be sitting in.

But then the night came, and it had been Bella's turn to go on stage and perform her routine. She had gone on - practically glowing with happiness - only to get halfway through her second song to see that her mother's seat was, in fact, empty.

It had torn her apart. She had promised her countless things over the years, none of which ever came to light. Renee always had more important things to do. And lately it was starting to annoy Bella more than usual.

She was sixteen now, and should have been enrolled in a ballet school to help her progress in her chosen passion.

But nope, she was cooped up in her bedroom watching old recordings of herself dancing as a child. And that made her anger towards her mother even greater.

Suddenly, her bedroom door flew open, almost taking it off it's hinges in the process. There stood her extremely angry mother.

"Isabella Marie Swan! I've told you to turn that rubbish down! Do not disobey me!" Renee yelled, her face reddening with rage.

Bella rolled her eyes towards her mother's over the top behaviour. "Mom, come off it, it's not that loud."

Renee's eyes widened as she took a step into her daughter's room. "Excuse me?! How dare you talk to your mother in such a disrespectful manner!"

Bella spun around in her chair, throwing daggers towards her. "Me?! How dare you barge into my room when I never gave you permission!"

"This is MY house, Bella! You are merely renting out the room until you find your own place!"

She chuckled, while looking down to her injured leg. "That's all I am to you, aren't I? Just a means to get extra money. You don't want me, you never have! I hate you! I wish you weren't my mom!" With that Bella grabbed her crutches and furiously hopped past her so called mother.

Sometime later, Bella sat in the garage trying to calm herself. She HATED living in Florida. She felt so out of place and unloved. When she was younger the children at her school would call her names and bully her. Bella didn't feel like her mother listened to her or even paid attention to her. She began to feel isolated. It became so bad that she had to see the school counselor to talk to her regarding her regressive behaviour. Bella had told them her mother would yell at her constantly and belittle her and make her feel like nothing.

What the hell had she done to deserve such a rubbish upbringing?

She sat on the chair which had once been in Renee's home office and used her crutch to spin herself around. Bella hated her school; everybody treated her like a freak because she was so pale and it wasn't even her fault!

As she thought about the color of her skin, a soft, boyish voice echoed in the back of her head.

"Why are you white, Bella?"

"Erm...well...my daddy and mommy are white."

"I'm not white, I'm golden...look see!"

She smiled, that golden arm looked so familiar to her but she couldn't for the life of her work out who it belonged too. A blurry image of a little boy with bronze skin and black hair appeared in her mind.

Black, Black, Black.

Why was that word so familiar?

As she glanced around the garage, she saw a bunch of boxes with various labels. All of them were for different rooms in the house, except one.

Bella grabbed her crutches and hopped over to the box labeled 'Do Not Touch!' So naturally...she touched.

She moved the chair toward her then plonked down on it, opening the lid to the box.

Reaching down she saw old pictures of her mom and her father. They looked happy, and Renee had been heavily pregnant. They both had wedding bands on and were holding one another, smiling. Bella sighed and continued to flip through. She found one of a little girl and a little boy. She recognized herself as the little girl ,and the little boy...he looked like the boy in her blurred memory bank.

It was then she realized she'd known him, but couldn't remember how.

When she heard the quiet footsteps, Bella looked up toward the garage door and saw Phil standing there, looking at her.

She wasn't sure if she was in trouble, his stance and facial expression gave nothing anyway.

"Hey Phil." Bella mumbled nervously, fiddling with the ends of the picture.

He kicked off of the side of the garage then,and strolled in with a kind smile on his face. "Hey honey, whatcha doin?"

Bella then hid the photo of the boy, in case she wasn't allowed to see it. "Just looking around the garage."

Phil then saw the opened 'Do Not Touch!' box and sighed. "I see you've found it."

"Erm...yeah..." She mumbled. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to pry!" She added quickly.

He face softened as he said, "Don't be sorry, honey. I suppose you have a right to know."

That had her attention. A right to know what?

"Know what, Phil?"

Phil groaned, running his hands through his hair. "That picture you're holding, I'm guessing you are wondering who the little boy in the image is?"

She nodded, waiting for much deserved answers.

"OK, I will tell you, but keep this between you and me, ok?"

Bella nodded again, urging him on with her hand. "When you were six years old, you made a friend on the La Push tribal reservation in Washington. Renee told me you were inseparable,you wouldn't go anywhere without one another. That little boy's name was Jacob Black."

Bella's eyes snapped open and her jaw dropped. That's it! Jacob Black! She knew the word "Black" sounded familiar.

Phil then continued, "You used to call him Jake ,and he called you Bells..."

Everything came screaming back. The happiness she felt while in his company, the way he would make her smile by saying the cutest, silliest things. She remembered the way it warmed her heart to see him smiling and happy .It was what she had wanted most then,to see her best friend that way.

But why had she been taken away from a place that made her feel that way?

"So, if I was so happy, why did Mom take me away?"

"Don't you remember anything?" He asked, sounding surprised.

Bella thought about her past; most things were a blur considering everything she'd gone through since. "I remember a lot of arguments, I remember Mom criticizing me constantly, but that's it."

Phil chuckled; that wasn't even the half of it. He knew he shouldn't be telling his stepdaughter this, but he felt for her. Not knowing your past, and the reasons why you were suddenly taken from everything you'd ever known, couldn't have been easy.

Maybe now was time she knew the truth.

"I suggest you get comfortable, it's going to be a long afternoon..."

* * *

_**Please review! They made me write faster! :)**_


	11. Not Abandoned

Hey guys, sorry this isn't a chapter! I've been getting a lot of PM's and reviews asking when I'm going to update and have I abandoned the story. _No _I haven't given up on it. I took some time out because I had too many things going on in my head that needed to be written down and they kind of took over. I've also had to find a new Beta and my pre-reader can no longer offer me suggestions, so all of this has slowed me down.

However, lately I have been thinking about starting to write this again, but until I do that, I want to get a few more chapters under some of my younger stories.

But, it's definitely in my head! I appreciate all of your words of encouragement! They mean so much to me, and I'm thrilled that so many of you like this story!

I hope you can continue to be patient with me until I get my head sorted!

Thanks for reading!

Cat.


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